


Time Keeps On Slipping

by mori87



Category: Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies)
Genre: F/M, Family Fluff, Team as Family, True Love, Unconventional Families, Unplanned Pregnancy, its gonna be a rough ride
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-31
Updated: 2019-09-12
Packaged: 2020-03-30 20:31:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,848
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19035088
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mori87/pseuds/mori87
Summary: Just a year after getting together, Gamora and Peter are hit with unexpected news.





	1. Chapter 1

Gamora hated sleeping in.

It just was not a luxury she was used to. It had always been early to rise and late to bed in the care of Thanos. Any sign of tiredness or fatigue would warrant a brutal punishment from Thanos. It was either that or he would replace a new part of her with mods. She jumped into the routine rather quickly, but Nebula wasn’t quite as keen.

Yet, here she was just now waking up in the late afternoon. She began to wonder what had gotten her so tired. They had been doing quite a lot of jobs for the Nova Corps, but that was never a bother to her. In fact, doing jobs is what made her feel useful in this galaxy. She no longer felt the guilt that came with being raised by the Mad Titan himself. It certainly wasn’t from the activites her and Peter were doing last night. For some reason, sex always seemed to energize her instead of wear her down like it does to Peter. Terrans have always been seen as weaker to her, but in the moment she felt weaker than one.

Gamora rolled over to find herself in an empty bed. She lifted her head slightly, allowing her hair to fall rather ungracefully around her shoulders, as she rolled into an upright position on the bed. She had remembered falling asleep curled in Peter’s arms once they had finished having their fun. He was nowhere to be seen now. She’s not surprised he didn’t wake her up. He is always on her case about needing more sleep and relaxing more. She would simply reply that there is no time for luxury when there is a galaxy at stake. She shook the tiredness from her body and rose up to stretch her arms. Gamora walked over to her drawer and slipped on some black leggings, and one of Peter’s old shirts. She loved the way his shirt smelled on her body as she finally walked into the kitchen area of their ship.

“ About time ya woke up. I’ve been workin’ on repairs by myself this whole mornin’” Rocket said in an irritated voice

Gamora was quick to walk past him, rolling her eyes in the process. She saw Mantis standing over the oven in a desperate attempt at making breakfast. Groot was standing by Rocket, watching him as he was tinkering with their weapon supply.

“I am Groot.” He said, running up to hug her legs.

He was about as tall as Rocket now and growing larger each day. She smiled at him and leaned down to give him a semi hug.

“I’m okay Groot. I just got caught up in my sleep a little too much. Which is what you need to start doing if you wanna continue getting bigger.” She suggested. Rocket had been letting Groot stay up far too late, and she could she that he was starting to become more sluggish than he should.

Groot scurried away while Mantis beamed proudly at her creation of breakfast. It looked to be a porridge of sorts with a side of eggs. Mantis had recently taken on the role of a caretaker as she tended to them while they were injured and helped with the majority of cooking and cleaning. She had certainly grown on Gamora since their first meeting. Mantis had shown great interest in whatever Gamora was willing to teach her. Her innocence also made it a lot easier to work with her since she didn’t often try to do the most perilous plan like Peter or Rocket.

“Mantis, how would you like to do a little more battle training today?” said Gamora sitting down to the table with a plate of eggs.

Mantis looked up from her cooking, smiling wide,” I would enjoy that very much! I cannot wait to learn how to kick names and take ass like all of you”

“Um. it’s actually take names and kick ass Mantis.” Said Peter, finally walking into the kitchen and taking a seat next to Gamora. “ And how is my beautiful sleepy head doing today?” 

Gamora’s eyes shifted towards Peter as he sat down next to her. His hair was curly and messy like always, but he seemed as happy as he ever has been. They had only been together for about a year since she admitted she found him attractive after their run with his father. He had been more than willing to start a relationship with her which still shocked her since she never thought anyone could want to be with her, Peter, however, has shown her everyday how much he adores and loves her. 

Mantis handed him a bowl of porridge which he took gladly, almost instantly devouring it. Mantis seemed very pleased with this reaction causing her antennae to perk up.

“I am fine. I just decided to take your advice and give myself a chance to rest up a little.” Gamora said as she began to eat her eggs.

“See, I told you I would finally get through to you. Now how does it feel to be all rested instead of cranky like you always are in the morning?” He joked with her. His eyes were shining bright as he put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer.

Gamora looked over at him with a playful look and said, “ I have no clue what you are talking about. I am perfectly pleasant in the morning time.”

Right as Peter was about to speak, Rocket cut in saying, “ It would’ve been perfectly pleasant of ya if you would’ve helped me with all this shit like ya said.”

Gamora narrowed her eyes at the raccoon, and was about to reply to his whining when suddenly she felt sick to her stomach. She stood still and closed her eyes trying to battle down the nausea that suddenly had taken over her body.

“ Mora’ is everything okay?” Peter asked her as he pulled back to examine her. She shook her head and rose from the table trying to steady herself. Everyone in the room was looking at her as her body kept trying to make Mantis’ breakfast reappear. Groot ran up to the table in a worried fashion using his vines to climb the table.

“I am Groot?” He said in a small voice looking up to her with his eyes round and worried.

Gamora had no time to answer him as she ran to their bathroom quarter and released the sick feeling she had been holding in. She wondered what could have caused her to get so sick. It wasn’t that the breakfast tasted bad, but it was the smell that seemed to have set her off. She noticed it was quite pungent when she entered the kitchen, but she never seemed to notice until Peter sat down with his porridge right next to her.

Once she was finished releasing her contents, She went to the sink to wash out her mouth. She couldn’t be sick could she? The more she thought about it, the more sense it made that she could, in fact, be sick. Around two months ago, she had Nebula remove some of the mods that had been placed in her. Nebula warned that without these mods, her body could take a toll and become weakened. Gamora didn’t care though. She wanted nothing more than to begin removing every piece of Thanos from her body. Now, she wondered if it was worth it judging by her appearance,

Gamora looked like hell when she saw herself in the mirror. Her hair was more messy than she would have preferred, she had bags under eyes, and her skin was a paler green than normal. She began to examine herself to see if there was an injury she may not have known about causing her weakness. As she lifted her shirt ( actually Peter’s shirt), she saw that her abdomen had discoloration right below her navel. It was a dark green color that wasn’t quite a bruise, but certainly was not her normal skin color. She put her fingers on the area feeling an intense heat, but no soreness that would accompany a bruise. She pulled her hand away as she heard a knock on the door.

“Gamora? It’s Peter. I’m just checking on you baby. Can I come in?” Peter said in a soft loving voice. She opened the door slightly to allow him in.

“I think I’m sick.” She said as he stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. She prayed he wouldn't question the intense heat that she could feel from her abdomen. Instead, he placed a kiss on the inner part of her neck and nuzzled his face into her hair.

“ It’s okay Mora’. I get sick all the time, and you’re like a total badass so i’m sure this is gonna blow over.” He said in a sweet voice

“ I don’t get sick. I haven’t gotten sick since I was a child still in the care of my mother.” She said in a monotone voice. She would have to go to Mantis to see what she could do. They recently found out that she can also sense illness within people and use her powers to make them feel stronger.

“ Well, I didn’t get sick for a while until we killed my asshole of a father. I think my celestial genes kept me from getting sick. You remember once they were gone, I was down for like a week. Maybe it’s the same with your mods being removed?” He suggested.

“Maybe. I feel like I would have experienced this sooner if that were the case.” She said. She didn’t know why, but she had a feeling that this wasn’t just an illness. Maybe her body couldn’t handle being without mods after having them so long. Maybe her body would begin to shut down, and she would pass in the blink of an eye. She shook the thoughts from her head.

She turned to him and planted a kiss on his lips. He gladly reciprocated her sign of affection and pulled her in tighter. He pushed her against the sink and began deepening their kiss. She began to feel the familiar heat in her belly that comes with Peter’s kisses. His hands travelled up and down her body as she pushed against him. She playfully nibbled on his ear as his hands slipped under her shirt. Her eyes opened wide as she realized her mistake and pushed him off of her, but it was too late. 

“Gamora, you’re burning up!” He said in a frantic voice, “ C’mon, we need to get Mantis to check you out” 

He grabbed her wrist and began pulling her out of the bathroom, but she yanked her hand from his grasp.

“I can go by myself Peter.” She said in a low voice. Her moods have been very extreme which she blames her upcoming cycle for. This made it very difficult for her to tolerate the other guardians antics and Peter’s overprotectiveness. 

Sensing her mood switch, Peter backed away and said in a calm voice “ Hey, I’m just looking out for my girl. I didn’t mean to rush you like that.”

“It’s fine. I’m sorry for being in a cranky mood...I guess you are right about some things.” She said softly. Peter broke out into a huge grin.

“ Haha! Yes! I finally got you to say i’m right about something!” He exclaimed basically bouncing with glee. Before she could say anything, he came up and kissed her. This kiss wasn’t like the one they shared in the bathroom. It was filled with happiness and love.

“ You go see Mantis okay? I’m gonna go help Rocket and Groot with repairs, so he’ll stop bitching about it”

Peter planted one more kiss on her cheek and walked or more like skipped off to the kitchen again. Gamora began her search for Mantis because she could see she wasn’t in the kitchen anymore. She searched all over the Benatar in hopes of finding her. She passed Kraglin trying to master Yondu’s fin with little success. She also saw Drax snoring loudly in a chair with his knives laid out on his lap. She figured he was probably cleaning them and then passed out. When she finally found Mantis, she was hiding in the corner of her bunk that she shared with Groot.

Gamora could see that her antennas were down, and she was sniffling with tears. Gamora hurried over to comfort her.

“Mantis what’s wrong? Why are you crying?” Gamora asked sitting down next to her on the bunk.

“I feel that I have failed you by fixing you a meal that made you ill.” Mantis said looking to her.

“No Mantis, your food did not make me sick. I actually don’t know what made me ill. That’s why i’m here so you can help me.”

“I don’t know… I do not want to fail you again.” Mantis said sadly. Gamora knew she adored praise since she rarely got any from her time with Ego. Gamora sighed and awkwardly put her arm around Mantis trying to comfort her.

“You wouldn’t fail me Mantis. In fact, you can help me right now by finding out what is wrong with me.” As she said that, Mantis seemed to cheer up quite a bit.

“Okay, I will try my best to help you.” Mantis said. 

Gamora undid their awkward hug and laid back so Mantis could use her powers. She placed her hand on Gamora’s shoulders which caused her antennas to light up. Gamora waited for Mantis to give her a diagnosis. Mantis sat there looking more confused than when Drax told her she should try to shave Rocket to “ save his life”. Her hand slowly moved from Gamora’s shoulder to the area where her belly felt like fire. As she placed her hand there, her antennas glowed brighter than Gamora had ever seen before. A genuine smile broke out on Mantis’ face as she continued her assessment. 

“Mantis?.. What is it? Am I okay?” Gamora said with her patience running thin.

“Life.”

“Huh?”

“I feel life.” Mantis said pulling her hand back but keeping the smile on her lips  
“What do you mean by life?” Gamora questioned starting to feel a knot in her stomach. It couldn’t be possible for her to be….expecting. She nearly threw up again as reality struck her. Her fatigue, mood swings, sickness, discoloration. They were all clear signs of pregnancy for her kind. 

Gamora sat up and whispered under her breath,” Fuck.”. Things just got a lot more complicated.


	2. Chapter 2

“Mantis, are you one hundred percent positive about what you just said? I mean have you ever felt...that before?” Gamora said hurriedly her mind was zooming with this new found news.

“Yes, I have. When I was with Ego, he would sometimes bring his lovers to his planet. There, he would use me to test if they were carrying his children or not.” She said. She was still sitting and smiling like she didn’t just deliver life changing news.

Gamora sighed and put her head in her hands. Her emotions were going awol in the moment because she wanted to scream, cry, or hit something very hard. She concluded that instead she would need to keep herself together. She couldn’t become weak because of this. She had handled worse news and situations before. She could handle this one.

“Mantis, look at me. You have to promise to keep this a secret. That means no one, absolutely no one can know about this okay?” Gamora said grabbing Mantis’ wrists.

Mantis tilted her head in confusion and said, “Why do you not want to tell anyone? This is a good thing right?”

“It is a good thing for some people, but not for me, Mantis. Not for any of us.”

“I think it would be a good thing. Now that Groot is growing fast, we can raise yet another little one.” Mantis said in a happy voice.

Gamora instinctively flinched when Mantis said ‘little one’. Another realization dawned on her as she remembered that Thanos was still out there in the galaxy. If he were to find out she was expecting, it could mean the end of her and her friends. That was not an option.

“Listen, Groot is by far enough to handle for us. I need to go make a call, and you need to make sure to keep your mouth closed. No one can know about this.” Gamora said in a low, dangerous voice.

Mantis lost her smile and nodded her head. Gamora left the bunk in a hurry. She knew the one person she needed to call at the moment. She headed back to her room that she shared with Peter and looked around for a data pad. Once she found it, she entered in a code that would allow her to speak to her person. After a few seconds of waiting, Nebula’s face appeared on the data pad with very little expression written on it.

“What is the meaning of this call, sister? You know I am quite busy.” Nebula said in an annoyed voice.

Nebula had recently taken up a mission to kill the followers of Thanos. She had been very successful in tracking down the person who had implanted the mods into both Gamora and Nebula. She told Gamora in great detail how she viciously killed him and made him regret ever laying a single finger on her. Gamora would be lying if she said it didn’t please her to hear that. Now, Nebula was on a path to find the people that took her from her home planet.

“I have called because I have now found myself in a bit of an..um..situation.” Gamora said.

“What kind of situation?”

“One where I may or may not be expecting a..a..um..” Gamora didn’t know how to go about telling Nebula. She didn’t know how to tell anyone for that matter.

“A what Gamora? Spit it out.” Nebula said very annoyed now.

“A baby..” Gamora whispered

“What? I didn’t hear you. Hurry up, I don’t have all day.”

“A baby!” Gamora shouted.

Nebula’s face went from annoyance to an almost confused one. Gamora waited to hear what she had to say, but every second she felt closer to throwing up again like she did earlier.

“This is a joke correct?” Nebula said as anger started to form on her face.

“What? No, this isn’t a joke at all!” Gamora exclaimed.

“No, this has to be one of those jokes your singing idiot tries to do all the time because I know you are not foolish enough to get pregnant right?” She said dangerously.

Gamora’s eyes pricked with tears at the question. She was already feeling bad about finding out she was pregnant. She couldn’t handle Nebula’s remarks too. 

“It was obviously an accident, Nebula. I had no clue this was even possible.” Gamora explained. 

“Of course it is possible, Gamora! Did you not think it was when I removed some of your mods?” Nebula said viciously. 

Gamora honestly didn’t think it was possible when Nebula removes her mods. In fact, Gamora wasn’t even sure which ones she removed, but looking back she guessed she should’ve asked. 

“Please Nebula, I feel awful. I need your help. I’m not ready to be a mother.” Gamora said holding back tears. 

“Yeah, you’re not ready. I don’t think you should ever be ready because it would be foolish of you to bring a child into a world where Thanos thrives.” Nebula said with high annoyance. 

Gamora got angry with that remark. It wasn’t that she ever wanted kids, but she sure wasn’t going to let Thanos decide that for her. 

“You know Thanos decides nothing for me anymore. I could have this child if I wanted to, and no one in this galaxy would stop me.” Gamora said. 

“Then you would be like the rest of your team. A complete idiot.”

Gamora huffed and said, “Then I guess I am an idiot.” And logged off the data pad. 

Gamora sat up on the bed she shared with Peter placing her hand over her abdomen. She instantly felt the warmth under her touch and began to think about her future. Nebula was right that it would be dangerous bringing a child into this galaxy, yet she also thought of the time she was trapped under Thanos. 

During that time, she thought she would never be more than a weapon brought up by the Mad Titan. She could never find true love, happiness, or even some good food. However, all of that happened. 

She found friends to laugh with, a person to fall in love with, and a family to call her own. She learned to trust in people and find it within herself to forgive the mistakes she had made. She learned that she deserved a lot more than what she was given. 

Gamora stood up and went to the closet in the room. She gathered up a bunch of the excess blankets stored in there for when they went to colder planets. She threw them into a corner and cleared out the closet space. It was a pretty large storage space that allowed them to put many boxes of weapons, rations, and body parts that Rocket liked collecting away. 

This would be enough room for you, Gamora thought placing her hand on her belly. She suddenly felt a very strong urge of protectiveness for this little creation. An urge she never felt before even when she thought she lost Peter. She had no clue what she was doing, but none of them ever really did. 

Just as she was moving the boxes in the closet, she heard someone walk in. 

“Um, are we renovating our room?” Peter said looking at the mess she had thrown across the room. 

“Oh, um, no I just really wanted to clear this space out.”

“Okay…” Peter said coming to sit by her side.

That was one thing she really appreciated about Peter. He never really asked or questioned things she was doing. 

“So what did Mantis say?” 

Gamora looked at him and quickly lied by saying, “She couldn’t really figure anything out. I think I will just have to go to a medical professional to get examined.”

Peter nodded his head and put his arm around her shoulder. 

“Well, good for you cause we’re heading to Xandar right now.” He said twirling a piece of her hair in between his fingers. 

“Why? Did we get called in for a job?”

“No, Rocket and Drax just wanted to get plastered, and Groot needs new batteries for his video game.”

Gamora nodded and leaned her head on Peter’s shoulder. She stared at the now empty closet space trying to imagine a cot in the middle. She was drawn out of her daydream by Peter’s voice. 

“I was thinking that maybe after you go to the doctor, we could head to one of the really nice Xandar hotels and have a little fun” He said and began trailing his fingers across her arm. 

This caused Gamora to have shivers run up her spine. She pulled her head back from his shoulder and leaned in to plant a kiss on his lips. 

“Maybe we could have a little fun right now?” Gamora said suggestively laying down on her back and pulling him on top of her. 

Peter gave a her a devilish smile and began kissing her neck. She threaded her fingers through his hair as his fingers travelled underneath her shirt. He stopped once he felt the warmth of her belly. 

“Hey, are you feeling up to this? Because I don’t want to do anything if you’re not feeling good.” He said gently while caressing her cheek. 

Gamora cursed internally forgetting about the heat in her stomach. She placed her hand on top of his to flatten it across her stomach. 

“I am fine, Peter. I would be even more fine if you kept going with what you were just doing.” She said. 

Peter smiled and continued to let his hands travel along her body. She instinctively grinded against his body when his hands found the sensitive part of her breast. His fingers brushed against her nipples lightly as he began to nibble on her ear. She let out a small moan of satisfaction as she allowed to let her hands to rest on his thigh. 

She could tell he was already hard and began to run her hand across the outside of his pants earning her a grunt from Peter. He had lost his smile and now looked completely focused on the task at hand. He shifted his body, so she could have easier access to his member. 

Peter began to slowly roll her nipples between his fingers causing her to arch her back against him. She loved it when he focused on that area of her body. Just as she was about to pull off her shirt, they both turned their heads to the sound that entered their room. 

“Drax! Come on dude! Do you ever knock?” Peter exclaimed scrambling off Gamora. 

Gamora sat up quickly and saw Drax standing in the doorway eating a bag of chips. 

“I came here to say we are going to be in Xandar in two hours. I was going to wait till you were done before saying anything.” He said stuffing another chip into his mouth. 

“That is so messed up and weird Drax!” Gamora yelled. 

“How? It is merely intercourse.”

“Yeah! It’s supposed to be a private thing between people.” Peter said. 

“People on my planet would often openly conceive in the public as to announce their commitment.” 

“That is disgusting.” Peter said with a disturbed face. 

“You Terrans have some weird hang ups.” Drax said shaking his head. 

“Dude, just get out and let us be alone.” Peter said

Drax shrugged his shoulders and left the room. Peter turned around to find Gamora holding back a laugh on the floor. 

Peter tried to look tough and mad but ended up letting a smile ruin his facade. 

“You think that’s funny huh? That I can’t even enjoy a little sexy time with my girl without being interrupted.” He whined as he sat down by her. 

“You poor thing, what are you going to do now?” She asked playfully. 

“I think now I’m gonna give you an extra fun time at the hotel tonight.” He said mischievously. 

“Is that so?” Gamora said smiling and pulling him down for a kiss. 

They moved to their bed and began to snuggle. Gamora grabbed a bunch of the blankets she had thrown out and covered them in a bundle. As she laid with him, Gamora began to wonder what Peter would think of her being pregnant. 

She knew she wanted to wait to tell him, or anyone for that matter, about the pregnancy, but she couldn’t help being curious. Suddenly, a stroke of fear rose through her as she began to wonder if he would even want to keep the baby. 

She didn’t even know if she wanted to keep it, but the thought of Peter not wanting it made her extremely upset. He, of course, had trouble with his own parents growing up, so it wouldn’t shock her if he didn’t want his own kid. Gamora started to feel sick again. 

“Everything okay Mora’?” Peter said rolling over to look at her. 

“Yes. I’m fine.” Gamora said turning to look at the ceiling. 

Things were far from fine though. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath in. 

“I’m gonna be sick again” She said and ran to the bathroom leaving Peter in the bed.


	3. Chapter 3

The team arrived in Xandar in the late afternoon.

Gamora’s nerves were in a twist due her impending doctors appointment. Peter had asked multiple times if he could come with her, but each time she declined him with more ferocity. She was already nervous enough, but she felt she could really do without Mantis’ constant questioning.

“Can I feel your stomach again?” Mantis asked.

Gamora and Mantis were the only ones on the ship at the moment because she encouraged the boys to go get the supplies they would need for the next month since she wasn’t feeling good. She told them that Mantis should stay behind with her in case she needed something, but Gamora didn’t want Mantis to accidentally spill her secret.

Gamora glanced over at Mantis and said, “No, I need you to find a doctor locally who takes walk-ins at this time of day.”

Mantis’ antenna lowered at her admission. Gamora guessed it made Mantis excited feeling her secret. 

“You can feel it after you find a doctor, okay?” Gamora said softly.

Mantis smiled at her statement and began typing faster to find a doctor. Gamora was extremely nervous about the visit. She didn’t know what to expect from it. The last time she can even remember being around a pregnant person was when she was young and with her mother. They went to visit a friend of her mother’s to give gifts for the occasion. She remembered being in her house and exploring it profusely. She saw that the friend made an elaborate nest for her new child coming. She became extremely sadden to know that the child never did come. It wasn’t long after then that Thanos came and took everything she once knew.

“I have found a doctor!” Mantis exclaimed, pulling Gamora out of her memory.

“Perfect. Let’s go.” Gamora said grabbing Mantis and heading out the door.

“But you said I could feel your stomach if I found one!” Mantis said stopping them in their tracks.

“Okay, you can feel but make it quick.” Gamora said lifting her shirt a little bit revealing dark green skin.

Mantis placed her hand on Gamora’s stomach and allowed her antenna to light up a beautiful glow. A smile formed on Mantis’ face as she shifted her hand around Gamora’s abdomen. Gamora watched her curiously as Mantis started giggling.

“What does it feel like?” Gamora asked.

“Hmm, it feels like...like the purest, most innocent creation. It feels like figuring out something new or finding out people love you. It is pure and good. It makes all the fear and loneliness I have go away.” Mantis said softly.

“Mantis, why are you scared and lonely?”

“I fear that I would lose my new family who actually loves me. That causes me to feel quite lonely sometimes because I do not want to be by myself again like I was with Ego.” She said taking her hand off of Gamora’s belly.

Gamora took Mantis’ hand and said, “I know it is scary since you can lose someone at any point, but I promise Mantis you will always have us.”

Mantis smiled and nodded her head, “Let’s go find this doctor.”

They travelled along the broken streets of Xandar with full speed. Gamora wanted nothing more in the moment than to just find this doctor and figure out what she was going to do. The duo pasted many vendors and merchants as they found the building they were looking for.

It was an older building that was obviously open at all times of the day. Gamora and Mantis walked into the building, heading to the front desk. There was a man there with buzz cut hair and scales covering his skin.

“How may I help you ladies tonight?” He said in a deep, raspy voice.

“Uh, we need to see a doctor for a, um, pregnancy check-up.” Gamora said as she stumbled on her words.

“Alright ma’am, the doctor will be with you shortly.” He said shutting the glass door that was between them.

Gamora sat down anxiously, and Mantis sat down next to her. Gamora was waiting idly by tapping her foot against the floor and putting her head into her hands. She had no idea what to expect from this visit. She was scared that there would be no baby even in there, and Mantis was just mistaken. She was scared that there was a baby in there, and she was going to ruin this child’s life.

“Miss Gamora?” A lady with four arms and coily hair asked looking into the waiting room.

Gamora rose up and said, “That’s me.”

“Alrighty, you can follow me to the back, and we’ll get started with your exam.” She said in a polite voice.

Gamora nodded and turned to Mantis, “Will you be okay waiting here for me?”

“Oh yes! They have many data pads with cute, fluffy animals to look at!” She said excitedly.

Gamora smiled at her and took a deep breath as she headed down the hallway. She found the doctor in a standard medical room, waiting patiently by the bed. She smiled at Gamora and waved for her to come in. Gamora followed the instructions and sat on the bed awkwardly.

“Hello miss Gamora, I am Dr. Chaya. I understand you are here for a pregnancy check-up?” She asked holding a data pad in one of her many hands.

“Um, yes. I’m just here to see how far along I am, and what my options are.”

“Okay, sounds good. I am just going to need you to lay down for me and pull up your shirt just a tiny bit.”

Gamora followed her instructions and watched as she pulled out a bottle and poured a dab of gel into one of her hands.

“This gel is gonna allow the machine to see into your placenta without causing harm to the baby. I will warn though, the gel is a little cold.” The doctor said as she began to rub the gel onto Gamora’s belly.

Dr. Chaya was right. The gel was absolutely freezing, but right as she was about to make an aggravated sigh, she heard one of the most beautiful sounds to ever bless her ears.

The rhythmic sound of a heartbeat came ringing through the machine as the doctor moved her hand around the gel. All the fears and doubts that Gamora had about possibly not going through with the pregnancy were out the door. A flood of emotions trampled her as she listened to the sweet sound of life coming from the machine.

“So far so good. The baby has a strong heartbeat, so as far as we know it is healthy. You also look to be around 9 weeks pregnant. Does that sound correct to you?” Dr. Chaya asked, but Gamora didn’t hear.

Her eyes were transfixed on the screen above her showing a little grey spot that was producing the sound. She never felt such an instantaneous love in all her life. It was like staring at the most wonderful creation in the galaxy. She felt tears pricking at her eyes as she listened to the sound of the heartbeat. 

“It’s amazing isn’t it? One of my favorite things of being a doctor is showing new mothers their little bundles of joy for the first time.” Dr.Chaya said happily.

“I never thought I could be a mother. I never thought I could raise a child in this world, hell, I still don’t think I can..” Gamora started saying, “But this is just a small being.”

Tears fell onto Gamora’s face as she said, “My job is to protect beings in this galaxy no matter what danger I am put in. I have no clue how I am going to do it, but I am going to protect this baby with my life.”

Dr. Chaya handed her tissues upon seeing the tears fall. She began typing into one of the data pads as she also began wiping the gel off of Gamora’s belly. Gamora wiped the tears from her eyes as the sound of the heartbeat of her beautiful creation died down without the gel. The fear that Gamora felt previously began to trickle back in as reality struck her once more.

“I know I just said I was going to protect this baby with my life, but how can I do that? The job I have is beyond dangerous, and could put a child at risk every single day of their life.” She said fearfully.

“I have had many patients in my years of practice. Some of them had jobs and lives that were perfect for raising children, yet some of their children passed away.” Dr. Chaya started saying.

“Then, I had patients whose jobs required them to give up their family in order to provide or keep them safe. Their children lived and became successful. We as people do not get to choose how things happen most of the time, but we can learn to adapt and get around them.” She finished handing Gamora the data pad.

“I tried to look up common symptoms of pregnancy in your species, but sadly there is little data about your kind. This list is the best I could find.”

Gamora looked down and saw of list of symptoms written in her people’s language. She understood most of what was written, but it would take her looking over the list many times to really grasp what it was saying since she hadn’t read the language in so long.

“The father of the baby is from Terra. Would our species mixing cause any problems?” Gamora asked.

“Not that I would assume. Now, with every pregnancy there is always the chance for complications, but interspecie mixing has never presented a problem in most cases.” The doctor answered kindly.

Gamora smiled and nervously tapped her foot trying to think of more questions to ask. She could honestly sit there all day asking the doctor questions since she had no clue what she was doing. 

“I’m not really supposed to do this as a medical professional, but I am going to give you my personal data pad code if you have any questions or concerns.” The doctor said handing her a piece of paper.

“Oh, thank you.”

“I lost a lot of friends and family when Ronan attacked Xandar. It has been a struggle for everyone here. Your team brought us safety. The least I could do to repay that debt is to make sure one of our heroines is safe medically.” Dr. Chaya said.

Gamora’s eyes pricked with tears again at the doctors statement. She hadn’t ever really thought about the effect of her battle with Ronan had on the people of Xandar. It brought her happiness knowing that the people are better and starting to thrive once more.

“This means a lot to me. I wish I could say I didn’t have any questions, but I think I am going to be contacting you everyday.” Gamora said jokingly.

“Well, I will always be ready to answer any questions to help the newest guardian.” Dr. Chaya said.

Gamora smiled and got up to leave the room. She headed back to the lobby where she saw Mantis lying upside down scanning a data pad and giggling.

“Come on Mantis, lets go find our team” Gamora said as they headed out the doors.

They found the rest of the gang in a market place on the outskirts of town. Peter spotted Gamora and Mantis before anyone in the team did. He hurried over to Gamora and picked her up in one of his famous spin hugs.

“Hey baby.” He said kissing her hair after sitting her down.

She watched Mantis hurry over to Rocket to check out the item he held in his paw. It looked to be a new type of gun, and she didn’t exactly like him holding it so close to Groot.

She looked up to Peter and said, “I thought you all went out to get supplies and not weapons?”

Peter laughed nervously, “Well, we got a few things we needed, but there was this guy selling these really cool blasters who told us about another guy with even cooler guns, and well now we have six new guns.”

“Did you really waste our money on guns we don’t need?” She asked angrily

“No no no, babe we definitely needed these bad boys. I mean look how freaking cool this is!” He said pulling out a gun that was decked out with vibrant colors.

“So, you wasted our money on a rainbow blaster?”

“What? No! It’s not some rainbow blaster. It is the kick-ass bad guy killing blaster that happens to be colorful.” Peter said.

“I see Drax also got some new knives.” She said glancing over to Drax who was joyfully swinging new machete blades.

“Also nessacary.” Peter said as he led them to a table by a merchants booth.

“Are you hungry? I could go get you some food while Rocket tries to scam that guy for more blasters.” Peter said holding her hand.

Gamora was honestly quite famished. She knew it was just the pregnancy making her so hungry, but she still didn’t want to indulge in food because she was pregnant. She decided to eat a snack since she knew she needed to listen to her body instead of being stubborn.

“I’ll have a small snack”

“Any kind in particular”

“Um, some Saar chips would actually be quite satisfying.”

Peter paused as he was getting up and looked back at her, “I thought you hated Saar chips?”

He was right. She usually hated anything extremely salty and fattening, but she craved it really bad and was willing to eat a few to get rid of this craving.

“I do, but they are filling. I’m just not in the mood to eat a lot, but I don’t want to be hungry you know?” She said quickly.

“Okay weirdo. I’ll be right back with your request m’lady.” He said jokingly as he headed off to another booth with various foods hanging from it.

She looked off and watched to other guardians hassling merchants in the area. She sighed and placed her hand on her belly. She now smiled at the warmth she felt from it. The memories of the heartbeat came flooding into her mind. She didn’t know how she was going to do it, but she was having a baby, and no one would get in her way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I first wanted to apologize for the well overdue chapter. I sadly lost a member of my family and had to take a break to cope. I do, however, highly appreciate all the amazing feedback I have been receiving! Seriously, you guys are the best! I hope y’all enjoy this chapter :)


	4. Chapter 4

There was something wrong with Gamora. Peter knew that the minute she said she wanted Saar chips to snack on. He knew how much she despised that type of chip claiming it gave no nutritional value and made her feel weak. She also hated the smell they emitted. So, Peter knew something was up if she suddenly had a change of heart to the snack.

He had noticed lately that she had been acting different, but it was never really a cause of concern for him. In fact, he had been in a state of pure bliss ever since they had gotten together over a year ago. He didn’t notice much going on around him unless he had to. The Saar chips were cause for concern for some reason.

He walked to a vendor in the street and choose Gamora’s snack. He also got a large bottle of wine that he thought they could share for later. He paid the vendor and began walking when he was stopped by Mantis.

“Peter! Peter! Look! I am like Drax now!” Mantis said holding a large machete in front of her. She swung it around happily while narrowly avoiding to slice Peter in half.

“Woah Mantis, be careful with that. You shouldn’t hold things you don’t know how to use.”

“I do know how to use it! Watch” She said swinging it over her head and accidentally throwing it into a sign of a merchant.

Peter laughed as the merchant furiously pulled the machete from her sign and tossed it to Mantis’ feet. He looked to Mantis and said, “Hey, how did Gamora’s appointment go? I totally forgot to ask her.”

“Uh...It went well. She is not dying, so there is nothing to worry about!” Mantis said quickly.

“Well, did they say what was wrong with her?”

“Nope! They said that she is healthy and strong just like always.”

“Then why was she throwing up and having a fever?” Peter asked more sternly.

“I am unsure. All I felt within her was li-“

“I have a small illness that will take its course within a few days.” Gamora said cutting into Mantis’ speech. She gave Mantis a deadly glare which gave Mantis the hint to leave.

Mantis scurried away leaving just Gamora and Peter standing in the middle of the road. 

“Um, I was coming back I was just asking her what was up with you.” Peter said looking at his feet.

“And I was starving. You took too long, so I came to retrieve the food myself. I see I came just in time because Mantis knows not of what she speaks.” Gamora said harshly.

“I think she does know, and you’re not telling me something” He said looking into her eyes. He was one of the only people to tell if she was lying. He saw for a split second in her eyes a moment of hesitation followed by a stern look.

“Are you implying that I am lying?” Gamora asked carefully.

“No, no, no. I just felt like there was maybe more to the doctors visit than what she was saying. Also, you kinda cut her off when she was telling me what she felt.”

“Because the only thing that matters is that I will be fine. My illness will pass soon, and we can be back to normal in no time.” Gamora said grabbing the chips out of Peter’s hands and walking away.

She took a seat at a table close by the other guardians and began eating. Peter sat himself down next to her and watched as she ate. He expected her to gag or yell at him for actually getting the chips, but instead she did a small satisfactory moan when she ate. 

“These truly are good.” She said popping more into her mouth.

Peter eyed her carefully, “Yeah, they are pretty good…”

“It is normal for people’s taste to change Peter everything is okay” She said rolling her eyes in annoyance.

He knew, though, that something was still off. There was just a difference in her he couldn’t quite place. She still acted normal albeit a bit more moody. He expected as much when Nebula took out some of her mods. Nebula told Peter that she would mostly likely regain some of her bodies natural functions that were taken away to keep her focused. He didn’t know exactly what she meant by “natural functions”, but he assumed it had something to do with a cycle of sorts that females have that make them all cranky.

He also took notice of her body filling out a lot more too. She had always been very muscular and lean with sharp edges contorting around her body. Nowadays, her body was much softer. The sharp lines of her abs slowly shifting away, her hips seemingly widening, and her breast becoming ever so bigger. He was in no means complaining about her change in appearance. He certainly loved seeing her fill out from eating, and plus bigger boobs was always an added bonus. Still, there was something about her that seemed to be different. She was more tired, aggravated, and slow, yet she seemed to have this certain glow about her. She truly was the most beautiful creature in the entire galaxy.

“Whatever you say, babe.” Peter said kissing her on the cheek and stealing a few chips for himself.

Peter pulled out the data pad that he and Gamora shared to look at the list of supplies they needed. It was the same old same old really just food, guns, batteries, and some toiletries. He noticed in the corner of the data pad that Nebula had sent a message. 

I am coming by later to discuss what you should do. Be ready for my arrival by late tonight. - Nebula

Peter was heavily confused by the message. First, Nebula never came by to visit unless there was a very pressing matter at hand. Second, it was obvious that Gamora had talked to her earlier about something very important. A decision to be made. He had no clue of what decision though. A bit of fear started to trickle into his mind as he imagined what decision was being made. Was Gamora really sick? Was she planning on leaving the group or worse him? He shook that thought out of his head. It may have been a rocky start, but he knew Gamora loved him and their team. She would never leave for no reason. His thoughts were interrupted by Gamora’s voice.

“I would like to look for a few blankets today.”

“Blankets? For what?” Peter asked

“I actually am not entirely sure, but I really need them. It is one of those, um, how you Terrans say ‘gut feelings’” She said awkwardly

“I mean yeah we can go look for some blankets babe.” Peter said holding her hand.

“Thank you. We should probably look now though. The sun is about to set.” She said rising up from her chair and tossing the chips bag into the disposal. He got up and pulled her into a hug.

“I love you Gamora. Just please let me know if there’s anything wrong.” He whispered into her ear.

She closed her eyes and hugged him back even tighter, “I’m fine, Peter. I promise.”

He looked at her and gave a quick kiss. “Let’s go get some blankets”

The couple walked around the shopping center for about two hours. Within those two hours, Gamora had acquired around 6 or so blankets in her arms. She wasn’t done looking yet either. Everytime they would buy a new one, she would say that she needed more. This again struck Peter in an odd way. Gamora was typically always hot. She rarely ever slept with more than one blanket, but now she was holding her own collection. Peter thought that maybe this was her way of branching out. For the longest time, she never felt she deserved anything more than the bare basics. Slowly, Peter introduced her to stuff that she would later claim as her own. Maybe she was finally just taking whatever she wants now. 

“You think you got enough?” Peter joked

“No, not really actually. I need...more.” Gamora said in a trance like state.

“Okay, well get as many as you want, but I think we should head to the hotel soon cause it’s getting a bit dark.” He said looking around at the darkening sky.

“I think I wanna sleep on the ship tonight”

“Oh, um, okay whatever you say..” Peter said in a sad tone. He was really looking forward to spending time with her in the hotel tonight. Of course, she wasn’t feeling good so that must be the reason.

The couple headed back to the ship, and on their way they saw Drax and Rocket drinking to their hearts delight at a rest stop bar. They seemed to be in a competition to see who could drink the fastest without stopping. Mantis was cheering them on as Groot sat on one of the bar stools playing his video game. Gamora was walking faster and faster as the ship approached their sights. Once they entered the ship, Gamora bee lined for their room and promptly shut the door leaving Peter standing by himself to figure out what was going on.

He didn’t know if he should give Gamora her space or intervene. All he knew was that something was definitely wrong with her. He just couldn’t figure out what. Suddenly, he felt a vibration come from his pocket. He took out the data pad and saw a new message from someone named “Dr. Chaya”. He tapped on the message which brought him to a blurry black and white photo. There was a grey mass in the middle of this photo, barely the size of a peanut. The message the doctor put read:

Thought you would like to have a photocopy of your scan. Expect to see rapid growth within the next few months.

Peter had to quickly find a chair to sit down, or he would’ve passed out. The only other time he has seen a picture like the one in the message was when his mother was first diagnosed with brain cancer. Fear and anguish struck him all at once as it took everything he had not to throw up. He felt tears pricking at his eyes as he realized that the only other woman he loved as much as his mother was sick too. Not only was she sick, but the doctor even said that it was growing rapidly. He guessed that he only had a few months left with Gamora if he was lucky.

He understood now why Nebula was coming in. Probably to try and fix the unfixable. His heart was aching at the thought of having to see Gamora go through the same thing his mother did. He put his hands against his eyes as more tears began to spring from his eyes. Everything in his body hurt with grief at the notation. Suddenly his head hit the table that he was sitting at. He looked up to find Nebula walking from behind him with anger in her eyes.

“What the hell was that for!” Peter exclaimed

“You deserve much worse for being so careless in letting my sister get into the predicament she is in”

Peter felt tears come to his eyes again as he said, “I-I didn’t know it was even possible for her.”

“Of course it is possible you idiot. What do you think would happen when I took her mods out?”

“Not this!”

“Well, there is still time to fix her situation whether she lets me or not.” Nebula said. She grabbed his arm and pulled him up, dragging him into the hallway with her.

“Wait, why wouldn’t she let you help her?”

“Are you really this dull? I would hope you’d know how her situation can change a person's thinking and judgement.”

Peter did know though very well how a tumor can change a person’s thought process. He had memories of his mother beginning to forget small things such as cleaning or cooking to larger things like her own name or the fact that she was actually sick. They stopped in front of Peter and Gamora’s room. Inside they could see Gamora holed up in their closet rearranging the mass of blankets she had into an intricate pattern. Everytime she was put a blanket pair together, she would shake her head and start over again. She was humming a small tune that Peter could recognize as “Come and Get Your Love”.

“What is she doing?” Peter asked watching Gamora tossing many blankets and pillows about.

“She is probably nesting. It is an instinct within her people whether she knows it or not. I didn’t think she’d be doing it this early though.” Nebula said in a much nicer voice than what she’s been using.

“Oh...so kinda like building a grave or something?” Peter asked

Nebula narrowed her eyes and said, “I guess you could say that.”

Peter just nodded his head. He walked in with Nebula to the obvious surprise of Gamora.

“Nebula? What are you doing here?” Gamora asked rising up from her nest. She looked over at Peter and saw his tear-stained face. “Peter, what’s wrong?”

“I know about your doctor’s appointment, Gamora. She sent a copy of you scan over the data pad.” 

For once, Gamora didn’t hide her expression. Peter could see genuine concern roll across her face.

“And? W-what did you think?” She asked tentatively.

“What did I think? I think it’s fucking horrible Gamora. What else am I supposed to think!” He shouted.

Gamora winced at his words and kept her eyes closed. She brought her hands to her head and made a frustrated noise.

That’s when Nebula cut in and said, “Gamora, I know your mind is clouded right now, but there are many other options for you. You can’t let yourself become so weak while Thanos is still alive.”

“I told you, I don’t give a damn about Thanos anymore! He doesn’t control me or my thoughts. I am certainly not going to let you decide for me either, sister. “ She hissed out moving into a very defensive stance.

“Gamora, I am not trying to fight. I am trying to speak some reason into you. What makes you think you are so capable all of a sudden?” Nebula said as she advanced onto Gamora.

Gamora saw that as a challenge and whipped out Godslayer.

“I would stand back if I were you Nebula.”

Nebula stopped in her tracks and spoke carefully, “I know this is just you being protective. I understand, but if you would just hear me out I know you’d see the error in all of this.”

Peter piped in saying, “Come on ‘Mora just listen to her please. We just want to help you.” He pleaded.

Gamora gave both of them a deadly look and said, “I will not listen to either one of you. I see that I am going to be on my own with this. That’s fine, I was on my own for most of my life anyways, but I will not let you take this child away from me.”

Another wave of shock rolled over Peter, “Did you just say a child? What child are you talking about?”

Gamora glanced between him and Nebula, “I-I thought you said you knew?” She said lowering Godslayer down to her side.

“I knew that you went to the doctor and found out you had a tumor?” Peter said questioningly. 

Nebula annoyedly sighed and said, “ Why did I think you actually had a clue about what’s going on?”

Peter looked at Gamora and asked, “So, you’re not dying from a tumor?”

Gamora walked towards him with tears glistening in her eyes and said, “No, Peter I’m not dying. In fact, I am kind of doing the opposite, I’m...expecting.”

“Expecting what?” Peter said slowly understanding what she was saying.

“A baby, Peter. Our baby.” She said grabbing his hand and putting it on her abdomen.

Peter felt the heat from Gamora’s belly under his fingers. He looked at her cautiously and slowly lifted her shirt about an inch. There he could see a dark green coloration cascading across her stomach. He laid his hand directly on her belly and looked up at her in amazement. Everything was starting to click for him, and finally he understood. Gamora was pregnant. They were gonna be parents. He was going to be a dad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I have been on hiatus for a while now, but I am back on track. I have a new schedule that will allow me to update more frequently. Thank you all for being so supportive! It really helps me to keep going. Hope you all have a great or night!!


End file.
